Digital rights advocacy organization the Electronic Frontier Foundation has filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against CMS seeking information on how the AI algorithms work in its traditional Medicare prior authorization pilot.  CMS’ Wasteful and Inappropriate Service Reduction model…

While a federal judge rejected an HHS funding threat against healthcare organizations providing gender-affirming care to minors last month, the ruling has not cleared a path for hospitals to resume such services. Hospitals and health systems continue to face a…

More than 130 hospitals have filed a lawsuit against HHS challenging how the agency calculates disproportionate share hospital payments, arguing the policy unlawfully reduces reimbursement for facilities serving low-income patients. The complaint, filed March 30 in the U.S. District Court…

Health savings accounts have become one of the more active areas of federal health policy over the past year, with GOP lawmakers pushing to expand eligibility and use the tax-advantaged accounts as a vehicle for broader consumer-driven healthcare reform.  Four…

Tallahassee (Fla.) Memorial HealthCare has dropped a lawsuit seeking a temporary injunction to remove a former patient who remained in an inpatient room for about five months after being discharged, the health system confirmed in a statement shared with Becker’s.…

The American Hospital Association is asking CMS to ensure that any fraud, waste and abuse-related changes are data-driven and do not add unnecessary administrative burden on hospitals.  The organization submitted a letter to CMS on March 30 in response to…

For the first time, payers must publicly post data on how often they deny prior authorization requests, how quickly they process them and how often denials are overturned on appeal. The first reports are due March 31 under a rule…

The Pennsylvania Department of Health cited Allentown, Pa.-based Lehigh Valley Hospital–Cedar Crest for using pepper spray to restrain a combative patient, The Morning Call reported March 30. The Sept. 14 incident involved a patient who was brought by ambulance to…

A federal judge has reduced Theranos co-founder Elizabeth Holmes’ prison sentence by one year, according to court documents obtained by Becker’s.   The reduction reflects a 2023 sentencing guideline change that grants leniency to first-time offenders convicted of certain nonviolent crimes. …

The Trump administration is expanding its civil rights crackdown on university diversity practices, launching new investigations into medical school admissions at Stanford (Calif.) University, Columbus-based Ohio State University and the University of California San Diego. The Justice Department is demanding…